These Bathroom Defects are Cheap to Fix But Expensive to Ignore

As you might Imagine, I see a lot of the same defects over and over again. Today I’d like to focus on three bathroom problems have an incredibly high return on investment for the cost of repairs:

Toilet Flapper Valve

Tub/Shower Sealant

Toilet Loose at Floor

All of these problems together can be fixed for under $100, but can cost thousands if ignored!

Toilet Flapper Valve

A defective flapper valve will cause your toilet to run continuously. A replacement kit costs about $25.00 and can be installed in under an hour. Potential damages include an unnecessarily high water bill, or for homes on well water the worse case scenario is a dried up well and burnt up pump! If you’re on a well this $25 kit can save you big money in repairs.

Tub/Shower Sealant

Missing or moldy/deteriorated sealant can let water leak behind your tub or shower into the wall and floor below. It does not belong there! Over time this water will build up and damage the building materials. For upstairs bathrooms you might notice some discoloration or bowing of the ceiling below, or it could silently deteriorate the underlying structure without any sign at all… until it comes crashing down! This can be avoided with about $10 of silicone caulk and a little bit of elbow grease.

Toilet Loose at Floor

I often see this problem at very nice new homes. The toilet sits on a seal made of wax, and if it’s not properly tightened down the toilet can move around and wear the wax ring out. This will cause a leak and it won’t be the clean water from the tank that sneaks into the floor below! Water damage gets expensive fast, but if you have a wrench and it’s not leaking yet, you can fix this problem for free. Need a new wax ring? It will run you a whopping $5.

These fairly simply DIY bathroom repairs can all be done in an afternoon. The time and financial investment is lower than going out to dinner and a movie if done right away, but can be more comparable to a European vacation if ignored.